July 5
I specifically picked Hamburg, NY, for our second night after leaving Iowa thanks to its close proximity to our next stop, Niagara Falls. A short 30 minute drive from the Motel 6 would allow me to try to beat the holiday weekend crowd that was sure to be there.
I woke up bright and early Friday morning and Ash and I were in the truck on our way at around 5:00 am.
Having no experience driving in New York, I had absolutely no idea what I was in for. I found myself traveling on the 110 foot-tall Buffalo Skyway. I was completely bonkers out of my mind while driving Clyde on this precarious bridge next to Lake Erie, and the loop to get onto it was no easy task either.
Things didn’t get much better as I crossed the South Grand Island Bridge, a towering suspension bridge carrying traffic from the mainland onto Grand Island on the Niagara River. This pair of bridges is also very high and is also very narrow. I made it over without incident though and not much longer after that, I found myself in lot # 1 at Niagara Falls State Park.
The park charges for parking but doesn’t start collecting until 7:30. As I beat that time by two hours, I wasn’t made to pay. I drove into the mostly empty lot and found a nice, secluded spot where I backed in under a tree, got Ash out and we headed into the park (making sure to take my hiking pack with water this time.)
There are actually three waterfalls that make up Niagara Falls as a whole. The first one we came across was the American Falls.
American Falls has a largely straight crestline of about 830 feet and the viewpoint from the shore is at a sharp angle from the side, so the view was, admittedly, a little underwhelming. From the Canada side, I’m sure the view is a bazillion times better, but I was still very impressed with what I was able to see.
As I write this, I had no idea there were absolutely massive boulders piled at the base of the falls until I came across this picture on Wikipedia while doing my research:
The sound was incredible as the water from the Niagara River plunges 110 feet into Lake Ontario below. American Falls sees over 75,000 gallons of water PER SECOND flowing over the edge.
I took some pictures and video and Ash and I continued on our way.
We hiked down Lower Grove Trail to the pedestrian bridge to Goat Island. The trail carries you over to Green Island first and then continues over the river to the big island.
We took the sidewalk next to the drive to parking lot #2 toward the Cave of Winds attraction, then beyond where we approached Terrapin Point to view the iconic Horseshoe Falls.
As we approached, I could tell visibility was going to be an issue. Even when we were still 2 miles from the park, I could see the towering plume of mist rocketing into the sky. As we approached, my fears were confirmed and only the edges of the 3,000 foot crest were barely visible from the spray being ejected into the sky.
womp-womp.
Horseshoe Falls deposits nearly 700,000 gallons of water per second into Lake Ontario, which, to me, is absolutely mind-blowing. I suppose with all that water dropping nearly 200 feet, mist should be inevitable, eh?
Ah well, at least there was a lovely rainbow being formed by the spray, huh?
Anyway, we repeated our process, taking pics and vids, and then we headed down the North Shore Trail. I will say this, I was not expecting Niagara Falls to be as green as I found it to be. We were actually hiking through a lovely park, with lots of trees and grass. This was no urban park with mostly concrete and an occasional tree to break up the gray.
We eventually found ourselves at the Three Sisters Islands, a trio of islands just off the shore of the much larger Goat Island. The walk over the trio was awesome, catching glimpses of some of the smaller streams from the raging Niagara River as they meander over the smaller land masses.
When we reached the western-most island, we were greeted with an amazing view of the rapid water as it tears down the river toward the perilous plunge over Horseshoe Falls. There were some fantastic pictures and videos to be had from this vantage point.
We stopped for a brief rest then headed back on up to the trail on the big island, making our way to the other side then over a short bridge to Luna Island that separates American Falls from Bridal Veil Falls, the smallest of the three.
The view of Bridal Veil Falls from Luna Island is similar to that of American Falls from the mainland- from a sharp angle and is likely better viewed from the Canada side. I did, however, get a slightly better view of American Falls from this vantage point.
By this point, I’d put on somewhere in the neighborhood of 11,000 steps and it wasn’t even 8:00 yet. I’d had my fill. Ash and I started making our way back to the mainland, then to the parking lot where I thought I’d parked right next to the visitor’s center where I could buy some souvenirs but come to find out, it’s just a generic building where some opportunistic parties decided to set up shop and take advantage of their proximity to an iconic landmark. The true visitor’s center is down the road a bit, at the corner of Rainbow Ave and 1st St. We drove over to the derelict lot across 1st St from the building where we were prompted to pay for parking. As I wasn’t planning on being there long, I politely declined and went in for a brief moment to pick up the souvenirs I was after.
I paid for my purchase and left, meeting Ash back in the truck and heading on to our next stop, the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY.
Reflections
I can see why some people would find Niagara Falls a “tourist trap.” Parking is expensive, I can imagine traffic could be a hassle and even leaving barely after the sun came up, it was already getting busy, but, pro-tip, if you go early enough, you can beat the traffic, beat the crowd, and skip paying for parking. If you’re the type that can go somewhere without buying souvenirs, you could get by seeing the Falls at the cost of gas.
I was thoroughly impressed and awestruck by what I saw. As I mentioned, some of the views were less than impressive but the overall feel of the park more than made up for it, and being able to see it without the massive crowds I was expecting was a HUGE plus.
Pictures from my visit to the iconic park are up on my Photo Diary. There’s still a LOT to come so make sure you keep up!
-Phil